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25 must-see buildings in New Jersey

The Landis Theater, Vineland: The Landis theater is one of the finest works of Art Moderne architecture in New Jersey. Designed by William Lee, AIA, for Eugene Mori in 1938, it originally held 1,200 seats for movies and live performances. Lee, a Philadelphia architect, designed many theaters and public buildings in the Delaware Valley, including the Lansdowne and Sedgewick Theaters near Philadelphia and Mitten Memorial Hall at Temple University. The streamlined design was executed in buff brick with cast stone, black Carrera glass, stainless steel, and glass block. The theater entrance has curved walls, which are reflected in the semicircular marquee. The marquee incorporates metal panels, stainless steel moldings and neon strip lighting. The "Landis" sign is made of bent metal, which is an intrinsic part of the marquee design. The original circular metal and glass ticket booth remains beneath the marquee. The adjacent Mori Building is a commercial building constructed of the same brick detailing as the theater and was conceived as part of the complex. One of the most playful and theatrical buildings in New Jersey, the Landis Theater was renovated in 2011 as a 750-seat performing arts venue. Bruce D. Turner, AIA

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The Landis Theater, Vineland: The Landis theater is one of the finest works of Art Moderne architecture in New Jersey. Designed by William Lee, AIA, for Eugene Mori in 1938, it originally held 1,200 seats for movies and live performances. Lee, a Philadelphia architect, designed many theaters and public buildings in the Delaware Valley, including the Lansdowne and Sedgewick Theaters near Philadelphia and Mitten Memorial Hall at Temple University. The streamlined design was executed in buff brick with cast stone, black Carrera glass, stainless steel, and glass block. The theater entrance has curved walls, which are reflected in the semicircular marquee. The marquee incorporates metal panels, stainless steel moldings and neon strip lighting. The "Landis" sign is made of bent metal, which is an intrinsic part of the marquee design. The original circular metal and glass ticket booth remains beneath the marquee. The adjacent Mori Building is a commercial building constructed of the same brick detailing as the theater and was conceived as part of the complex. One of the most playful and theatrical buildings in New Jersey, the Landis Theater was renovated in 2011 as a 750-seat performing arts venue.
Bruce D. Turner, AIA

Asbury Park Convention Hall & Casino: The Asbury Park Convention Hall, an exuberant brick and terra-cotta pleasure palace, consists of three elements: the Paramount Theater, the Convention Hall and the Arcade. The Arcade connects the other two structures and terminates the northern edge of the Boardwalk. The Casino Building anchors the southern end of the Boardwalk and served, when constructed, as a large amusement hall. Designed by Warren and Wetmore, who also designed Grand Central Station, the buildings were begun in 1929 and completed by July 1, 1930. They enjoyed only limited success due to the Great Depression and the outbreak of World War II. Both the Convention Hall and the Casino are steel frame buildings with brick walls, terra-cotta and copper ornament, and copper-clad windows. The entrance to the Paramount Theater is an elaborate arcade that faces an urban park to the west. The west wall of the theater has three monumental arches articulated with stone and terra-cotta. A brick and terra-cotta water tower, recently restored, rises above the theater and serves as the town landmark. The Arcade is a beautifully detailed public space with a glass curtain wall facing the Boardwalk and trimmed in copper. The Convention Hall has terra-cotta ornament and copper sculptural elements throughout. These details emphasize a marine theme, including ocean waves, shells, seahorses and a magnificent three-masted ship atop the parapet. The Casino also has a copper and glass facade containing elaborate, pressed metal decoration. At the ends of the Casino's main facade are fluted, cast-stone piers capped by large copper lanterns. Although the Convention Hall has been renovated, the Casino is an architectural ruin awaiting full restoration and adaptive use. Alexander M. Noble

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Asbury Park Convention Hall & Casino: The Asbury Park Convention Hall, an exuberant brick and terra-cotta pleasure palace, consists of three elements: the Paramount Theater, the Convention Hall and the Arcade. The Arcade connects the other two structures and terminates the northern edge of the Boardwalk. The Casino Building anchors the southern end of the Boardwalk and served, when constructed, as a large amusement hall. Designed by Warren and Wetmore, who also designed Grand Central Station, the buildings were begun in 1929 and completed by July 1, 1930. They enjoyed only limited success due to the Great Depression and the outbreak of World War II. Both the Convention Hall and the Casino are steel frame buildings with brick walls, terra-cotta and copper ornament, and copper-clad windows. The entrance to the Paramount Theater is an elaborate arcade that faces an urban park to the west. The west wall of the theater has three monumental arches articulated with stone and terra-cotta. A brick and terra-cotta water tower, recently restored, rises above the theater and serves as the town landmark. The Arcade is a beautifully detailed public space with a glass curtain wall facing the Boardwalk and trimmed in copper. The Convention Hall has terra-cotta ornament and copper sculptural elements throughout. These details emphasize a marine theme, including ocean waves, shells, seahorses and a magnificent three-masted ship atop the parapet. The Casino also has a copper and glass facade containing elaborate, pressed metal decoration. At the ends of the Casino's main facade are fluted, cast-stone piers capped by large copper lanterns. Although the Convention Hall has been renovated, the Casino is an architectural ruin awaiting full restoration and adaptive use.
Alexander M. Noble

Lucy the Elephant, Margate: The metal monument that was erected to sell real estate at the end of Atlantic City's barrier island is today one of New Jersey's most recognizable symbols. "Lucy the Margate Elephant" was patented by James V. Lafferty in 1881 as one of a series of metal eye-catchers that were to be built up and down the Eastern seaboard. Sixty-five feet from toe to howdah, she weighed 90 tons and was built of sheet metal on a wooden frame. Almost immediately, the salt air began to corrode her skin and rot her skeleton. She stood for nearly 50 years without repairs, until residents successfully petitioned to have her named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966. Three restorations later, it appears that the problematic pachyderm will be here for another hundred years. Alexander M. Noble

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Lucy the Elephant, Margate: The metal monument that was erected to sell real estate at the end of Atlantic City's barrier island is today one of New Jersey's most recognizable symbols. "Lucy the Margate Elephant" was patented by James V. Lafferty in 1881 as one of a series of metal eye-catchers that were to be built up and down the Eastern seaboard. Sixty-five feet from toe to howdah, she weighed 90 tons and was built of sheet metal on a wooden frame. Almost immediately, the salt air began to corrode her skin and rot her skeleton. She stood for nearly 50 years without repairs, until residents successfully petitioned to have her named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966. Three restorations later, it appears that the problematic pachyderm will be here for another hundred years.
Alexander M. Noble

Statue of Liberty and Liberty State Park, Jersey City: Although its legal location is in the state of New York, the Statue of Liberty sits close to the New Jersey Shore in New York Harbor and is accessible by ferry from Liberty State Park. New Jersey shares a sense of ownership due to the statue's proximity and its embodiment of the values of liberty and freedom. A gift from the government of France to mark the centennial of the signing of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, the Statue of Liberty was not unveiled and dedicated until Oct. 28, 1886. Frederic Auguste Bartholdi was the French sculptor who designed and fabricated the statue with a small army of metal craftsman. It is constructed of copper installed on a framework of metal bars, which are in turn attached to steel structural supports. The supporting structure was designed by French structural engineer Gustav Eiffel, and the American architect Richard Morris Hunt, FAIA, designed its granite and concrete base. Located within the perimeter of historic Fort Wood, first built in 1811, the statue faces south toward the Atlantic Ocean and has welcomed generations of immigrants to our country. The statue underwent a major restoration in 1984 and was rededicated on July 3, 1986. From 2011 until 2012, safety improvements were made requiring the statue to be closed to the public once again. Alexander M. Noble

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Statue of Liberty and Liberty State Park, Jersey City: Although its legal location is in the state of New York, the Statue of Liberty sits close to the New Jersey Shore in New York Harbor and is accessible by ferry from Liberty State Park. New Jersey shares a sense of ownership due to the statue's proximity and its embodiment of the values of liberty and freedom. A gift from the government of France to mark the centennial of the signing of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, the Statue of Liberty was not unveiled and dedicated until Oct. 28, 1886. Frederic Auguste Bartholdi was the French sculptor who designed and fabricated the statue with a small army of metal craftsman. It is constructed of copper installed on a framework of metal bars, which are in turn attached to steel structural supports. The supporting structure was designed by French structural engineer Gustav Eiffel, and the American architect Richard Morris Hunt, FAIA, designed its granite and concrete base. Located within the perimeter of historic Fort Wood, first built in 1811, the statue faces south toward the Atlantic Ocean and has welcomed generations of immigrants to our country. The statue underwent a major restoration in 1984 and was rededicated on July 3, 1986. From 2011 until 2012, safety improvements were made requiring the statue to be closed to the public once again.
Alexander M. Noble

Doo Wop Preservation, Caribbean Motel, Wildwood: Following the success of seaside resort hotels in Atlantic City, Asbury Park and Spring Lake, beach communities began to proliferate on the Shore's southern barrier islands. Once highways were built in the 1950s linking Shore towns like Avalon, Stone Harbor and Wildwood to Philadelphia, a new building type emerged to serve weekend tourists: the motel. Built cheaply and quickly with flat slab concrete systems, Jersey Shore motels became the architectural equivalent of muscle cars and string bikinis, often demonstrating more flair than their West Coast cousins. When these ebullient symbols of mid-20th-century style were threatened in the 1990s, residents of Wildwood joined with architect Steven Izenour, AIA, (a co-author of the influential study "Learning from Las Vegas") to create the Doo Wop Preservation League. Though Izenour died before preservation efforts were complete, his legacy lives on in restored motels like the Caribbean. Alexander M. Noble

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Doo Wop Preservation, Caribbean Motel, Wildwood: Following the success of seaside resort hotels in Atlantic City, Asbury Park and Spring Lake, beach communities began to proliferate on the Shore's southern barrier islands. Once highways were built in the 1950s linking Shore towns like Avalon, Stone Harbor and Wildwood to Philadelphia, a new building type emerged to serve weekend tourists: the motel. Built cheaply and quickly with flat slab concrete systems, Jersey Shore motels became the architectural equivalent of muscle cars and string bikinis, often demonstrating more flair than their West Coast cousins. When these ebullient symbols of mid-20th-century style were threatened in the 1990s, residents of Wildwood joined with architect Steven Izenour, AIA, (a co-author of the influential study "Learning from Las Vegas") to create the Doo Wop Preservation League. Though Izenour died before preservation efforts were complete, his legacy lives on in restored motels like the Caribbean.
Alexander M. Noble

Hoboken Terminal: The Hoboken terminal is the hub for commuter trains, bus lines, light rail, subway lines and ferry traffic. Constructed in 1907, it remains vital in the lives of more than 50,000 people who use its various systems daily. Designed by Kenneth M. Murchison, FAIA, the terminal is most notable for the way in which it achieves architectural mastery both in its function of accommodating multiple means of transportation and its aesthetic expression. Its waiting room, designed in the American idiom of the Beaux Arts style, is a masterpiece of public interior architecture. Organized symmetrically, it focuses on a monumental staircase and is dominated by a skylit ceiling of Tiffany glass, which is framed by a decorative cove and beams. The room is ringed by tall windows framed with pilasters, and its terrazzo floor echoes the ceiling's geometry. The terminal building is listed on the State and National Register of Historic Places. Alexander M. Noble

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Hoboken Terminal: The Hoboken terminal is the hub for commuter trains, bus lines, light rail, subway lines and ferry traffic. Constructed in 1907, it remains vital in the lives of more than 50,000 people who use its various systems daily. Designed by Kenneth M. Murchison, FAIA, the terminal is most notable for the way in which it achieves architectural mastery both in its function of accommodating multiple means of transportation and its aesthetic expression. Its waiting room, designed in the American idiom of the Beaux Arts style, is a masterpiece of public interior architecture. Organized symmetrically, it focuses on a monumental staircase and is dominated by a skylit ceiling of Tiffany glass, which is framed by a decorative cove and beams. The room is ringed by tall windows framed with pilasters, and its terrazzo floor echoes the ceiling's geometry. The terminal building is listed on the State and National Register of Historic Places.
Alexander M. Noble

New Jersey Institute for Food, Nutrition & Health at Rutgers University, New Brunswick: Ballinger’s design for the New Jersey Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health at Rutgers University won the top Honor Award for built work from the New Jersey Chapter of the American Institute of Architects in 2016. The New Jersey Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health (IFNH) physically co-locates and strategically aligns diverse disciplines to address society’s pressing challenges in cardio-inflammatory disease, cancer and obesity. The Institute’s centerpiece is a highly sustainable interdisciplinary research building that embodies the concepts of movement, activity and wellness that are central to the Institute’s mission. The iconic building is transparent to nature, inviting faculty, students and the community to engage in the nutrition and health activities housed within. A large solar “parasol” is the organizing feature of the design. The interior features a student health clinic, a human performance lab, a nutrition research clinic, a healthy eating courtyard and a preschool dedicated to educating parents and children on diet and nutrition. The remaining spaces house wet and dry labs, faculty and administrative offices and outreach meeting spaces. Albert Vecerka/Esto

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New Jersey Institute for Food, Nutrition & Health at Rutgers University, New Brunswick: Ballinger’s design for the New Jersey Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health at Rutgers University won the top Honor Award for built work from the New Jersey Chapter of the American Institute of Architects in 2016. The New Jersey Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health (IFNH) physically co-locates and strategically aligns diverse disciplines to address society’s pressing challenges in cardio-inflammatory disease, cancer and obesity. The Institute’s centerpiece is a highly sustainable interdisciplinary research building that embodies the concepts of movement, activity and wellness that are central to the Institute’s mission. The iconic building is transparent to nature, inviting faculty, students and the community to engage in the nutrition and health activities housed within. A large solar “parasol” is the organizing feature of the design. The interior features a student health clinic, a human performance lab, a nutrition research clinic, a healthy eating courtyard and a preschool dedicated to educating parents and children on diet and nutrition. The remaining spaces house wet and dry labs, faculty and administrative offices and outreach meeting spaces.
Albert Vecerka/Esto

Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Newark: On the north side of Newark, in what was historically a vibrant Italian-American neighborhood, stands the Magnificent Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, its two towers visible for miles around. Unlike New York City's Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, this church was completed between 1899 and 1945 in a single building campaign, funded entirely by the contributions from the Roman Catholic immigrants who labored in the factories and businesses that made the city prosper during the early 20 century. Designed by Jeremiah O'Rourke, FAIA, one of the architect's brilliant conceits was the diagonal orientation of the two towers, which not only gives the exterior dynamic spatial qualities, but also links the cathedral to the downtown area to the southeast. The interior is based on French Gothic cathedrals, an unusual influence in Roman Catholic churches built mainly for Italian, Polish and Irish parishioners. Alexander M. Noble

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Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Newark: On the north side of Newark, in what was historically a vibrant Italian-American neighborhood, stands the Magnificent Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, its two towers visible for miles around. Unlike New York City's Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, this church was completed between 1899 and 1945 in a single building campaign, funded entirely by the contributions from the Roman Catholic immigrants who labored in the factories and businesses that made the city prosper during the early 20 century. Designed by Jeremiah O'Rourke, FAIA, one of the architect's brilliant conceits was the diagonal orientation of the two towers, which not only gives the exterior dynamic spatial qualities, but also links the cathedral to the downtown area to the southeast. The interior is based on French Gothic cathedrals, an unusual influence in Roman Catholic churches built mainly for Italian, Polish and Irish parishioners.
Alexander M. Noble

Craftsman Farms, Parsippany: Gustav Stickley (1858-1942) is generally considered to be the father of the Arts and Crafts movement in America. Many Garden State residents do not know that the only historic site directly connected with this seminal figure was located on a well-traveled stretch of Route 10 in Morris County. From 1910 to 1914, Stickley lived, worked and dreamed at the place he would call Craftsman Farms, constructing a dozen buildings that are largely extant today. The main building, Log House, is a prime repository of original Stickley furniture and crafts artifacts. Following its preservation in 1989 and its designation as a National Historic Landmark, Craftsman Farms has emerged as a major museum and historic site, largely through state and county historic preservation grants and individual contributions. A mecca for decorative arts collectors and students of the Arts and Crafts movement, it now rivals Washington's Headquarters as one of Morris County's must-see tourist destinations. Alexander M. Noble

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Craftsman Farms, Parsippany: Gustav Stickley (1858-1942) is generally considered to be the father of the Arts and Crafts movement in America. Many Garden State residents do not know that the only historic site directly connected with this seminal figure was located on a well-traveled stretch of Route 10 in Morris County. From 1910 to 1914, Stickley lived, worked and dreamed at the place he would call Craftsman Farms, constructing a dozen buildings that are largely extant today. The main building, Log House, is a prime repository of original Stickley furniture and crafts artifacts. Following its preservation in 1989 and its designation as a National Historic Landmark, Craftsman Farms has emerged as a major museum and historic site, largely through state and county historic preservation grants and individual contributions. A mecca for decorative arts collectors and students of the Arts and Crafts movement, it now rivals Washington's Headquarters as one of Morris County's must-see tourist destinations.
Alexander M. Noble

George Washington Bridge, Fort Lee: It was the first independent work of Othmar H. Ammann (1879 -1965), one of the greatest of all bridge designers, who had a long engineering career in and around New York City. While working as an assistant to Gustav Lindenthal, the renowned designer of the Hell Gate arch bridge for the Pennsylvania Railroad, Ammann first became intrigued with the idea of a span over the Hudson River to link Manhattan Island with New Jersey. In the early 1920s, his mentor unsuccessfully promoted a bridge that would cross the river at 57th Street. Sensing that his scheme was flawed, Ammann left Lindenthal to form his own engineering firm. He promptly designed a suspension bridge that would span a shorter distance, using elevated anchorages on the Palisades at Fort Lee and bluffs above 179th Street. In 1927 the Port Authority hired him to design the bridge he had already envisioned. Finished in 1931, the graceful steel structure measured 4,760 feet between anchorages and featured two 635-foot towers with distinctive cross-braces. Alexander M. Noble

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George Washington Bridge, Fort Lee: It was the first independent work of Othmar H. Ammann (1879 -1965), one of the greatest of all bridge designers, who had a long engineering career in and around New York City. While working as an assistant to Gustav Lindenthal, the renowned designer of the Hell Gate arch bridge for the Pennsylvania Railroad, Ammann first became intrigued with the idea of a span over the Hudson River to link Manhattan Island with New Jersey. In the early 1920s, his mentor unsuccessfully promoted a bridge that would cross the river at 57th Street. Sensing that his scheme was flawed, Ammann left Lindenthal to form his own engineering firm. He promptly designed a suspension bridge that would span a shorter distance, using elevated anchorages on the Palisades at Fort Lee and bluffs above 179th Street. In 1927 the Port Authority hired him to design the bridge he had already envisioned. Finished in 1931, the graceful steel structure measured 4,760 feet between anchorages and featured two 635-foot towers with distinctive cross-braces.
Alexander M. Noble

Somerset Court County Courthouse, Somerville: This courthouse was designed by James Riley Gordon, AIA, with Everets Tracy, AIA, and Edgerton Swartout, FAIA, all alumni of the office of McKim, Mead & White, one of the principal proponents of Beaux Arts classicism. Like the Essex County Courthouse in Newark, it is an excellent example of the American Renaissance period. A public building of modest size (about 35,000 square feet), it has a grand scale imparted by a high basement and a cascade of marble steps from the main floor down to grade. Its monumental portico and lantern capped by a copper dome with the Statue of Enlightenment reinforce this scale. The building dominates the historic Somerville Green, which also contains the Lord Memorial Fountain by John Russell Pope, FAIA, and a historic stone church used now as a jury waiting area. The interior has a full-height rotunda with a circular colonnade of the Corinthian order at the level of the main courtroom. The courtroom is articulated with a judge's bench, witness area, jury area, paneling and seats, all constructed of oak. The vaulted plaster ceiling features a large stained-glass laylight in the center of the room. The room beneath the main court was fitted out as a courtroom in the 1950s, and its finishes were recently restored to that period. The entire building underwent a major renovation by Short & Ford & Partners, Architects, in the mid-1990s that refurbished the marble facade, the metal roofs, the dome and all interior features. Alexander M. Noble

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Somerset Court County Courthouse, Somerville: This courthouse was designed by James Riley Gordon, AIA, with Everets Tracy, AIA, and Edgerton Swartout, FAIA, all alumni of the office of McKim, Mead & White, one of the principal proponents of Beaux Arts classicism. Like the Essex County Courthouse in Newark, it is an excellent example of the American Renaissance period. A public building of modest size (about 35,000 square feet), it has a grand scale imparted by a high basement and a cascade of marble steps from the main floor down to grade. Its monumental portico and lantern capped by a copper dome with the Statue of Enlightenment reinforce this scale. The building dominates the historic Somerville Green, which also contains the Lord Memorial Fountain by John Russell Pope, FAIA, and a historic stone church used now as a jury waiting area. The interior has a full-height rotunda with a circular colonnade of the Corinthian order at the level of the main courtroom. The courtroom is articulated with a judge's bench, witness area, jury area, paneling and seats, all constructed of oak. The vaulted plaster ceiling features a large stained-glass laylight in the center of the room. The room beneath the main court was fitted out as a courtroom in the 1950s, and its finishes were recently restored to that period. The entire building underwent a major renovation by Short & Ford & Partners, Architects, in the mid-1990s that refurbished the marble facade, the metal roofs, the dome and all interior features.
Alexander M. Noble

Camden Waterfront District: Camden's greatest attribute, and the focus of strenuous efforts to reverse the city's long decline, is its waterfront. Extending along the Delaware River opposite Philadelphia, Camden was once known as "the biggest little city in the world," the home of RCA Victor, Campbell Soup Company and Walt Whitman. The contraction of manufacturing and the surge of the automobile in American life contributed to Camden's urban dilemmas. Since 1984 there's been a concerted effort, led by the Cooper's Ferry Development Association, to reshape the waterfront, in the hope that its resurgence will stimulate the revitalization of the city. The New Jersey State Aquarium, designed by Hillier Architecture, opened in 1992; after a 2005 renovation, it was renamed the Adventure Aquarium. The BB&T Pavilion (formerly the Susquehanna Bank Center and the Tweeter Center) is a 25,000 seat open-air amphitheatre opened in 1995. And One Port Center, by architect Michael Graves, FAIA, has housed the headquarters of the Delaware River Port Authority since 1994. Ferry service to Philadelphia was resumed 1992, and office and residential construction have further strengthened the waterfront. Robert O'Reilly, AIA

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Camden Waterfront District: Camden's greatest attribute, and the focus of strenuous efforts to reverse the city's long decline, is its waterfront. Extending along the Delaware River opposite Philadelphia, Camden was once known as "the biggest little city in the world," the home of RCA Victor, Campbell Soup Company and Walt Whitman. The contraction of manufacturing and the surge of the automobile in American life contributed to Camden's urban dilemmas. Since 1984 there's been a concerted effort, led by the Cooper's Ferry Development Association, to reshape the waterfront, in the hope that its resurgence will stimulate the revitalization of the city. The New Jersey State Aquarium, designed by Hillier Architecture, opened in 1992; after a 2005 renovation, it was renamed the Adventure Aquarium. The BB&T Pavilion (formerly the Susquehanna Bank Center and the Tweeter Center) is a 25,000 seat open-air amphitheatre opened in 1995. And One Port Center, by architect Michael Graves, FAIA, has housed the headquarters of the Delaware River Port Authority since 1994. Ferry service to Philadelphia was resumed 1992, and office and residential construction have further strengthened the waterfront.
Robert O'Reilly, AIA

Emlen Physick House, Cape May: AIA Fellow Frank Furness's jagged, whimsical house for Dr. Emlen Physick, built in 1878-1879 by contractor Charles Shaw, is quite literally the centerpiece of Cape May's late 20th-century economic revival. Home to the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts and Humanities, the house and its grounds became the locus of spring and summer tourism in this extraordinary Victorian resort at the edge of the Delaware Bay. Before it was purchased by the city in 1970s, the building was threatened with demolition. Years of patient fundraising and preservation have seen both the Physick House and the entire town become a jewel of New Jersey heritage tourism. Though Furness (1839-1912) was but one of many prominent Philadelphia architects who designed cottages and hotels for late 19th-century summer residents, his reputation as America's most eccentric architect of the period gives this building a special cachet. Docents at the house delight in pointing out the bizarre fireplace mantels and flamboyant carved woodwork in the stair hall while relating events in the lives of the architect and patron. At Christmas the house takes on an even more dramatic air, as rich Victorian decorations festoon every room. The Physick House is quite literally the most visited architectural landmark in the state outside of New York Harbor. Alexander M. Noble

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Emlen Physick House, Cape May: AIA Fellow Frank Furness's jagged, whimsical house for Dr. Emlen Physick, built in 1878-1879 by contractor Charles Shaw, is quite literally the centerpiece of Cape May's late 20th-century economic revival. Home to the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts and Humanities, the house and its grounds became the locus of spring and summer tourism in this extraordinary Victorian resort at the edge of the Delaware Bay. Before it was purchased by the city in 1970s, the building was threatened with demolition. Years of patient fundraising and preservation have seen both the Physick House and the entire town become a jewel of New Jersey heritage tourism. Though Furness (1839-1912) was but one of many prominent Philadelphia architects who designed cottages and hotels for late 19th-century summer residents, his reputation as America's most eccentric architect of the period gives this building a special cachet. Docents at the house delight in pointing out the bizarre fireplace mantels and flamboyant carved woodwork in the stair hall while relating events in the lives of the architect and patron. At Christmas the house takes on an even more dramatic air, as rich Victorian decorations festoon every room. The Physick House is quite literally the most visited architectural landmark in the state outside of New York Harbor.
Alexander M. Noble

First Presbyterian Church, Rumson: Rumson is fortunate to have this Shingle Style gem, restored by Farewell Mills Gatch Architects. The design, featuring a unique wooded dome and cupola, is the earliest extant work of Thomas S. Hastings, FAIA (1869-1929), whose firm designed the New York Public Library in Manhattan. Hastings's father, a noted Presbyterian minister in New York, served as summer pastor in the village, called Oceanic at that time. In 1885 he asked his son, then a draftsman with McKim, Mead & White, to design a new chapel for the small but wealthy congregation of "cottagers." During the 1880s this era of the Jersey Shore was a playground for America's elite and elaborate summer houses were being built from Middletown to Long Branch. Just as the church was finished in 1886, Hastings left Stanford White's office to form a partnership with John Merven Carrere and to compete against his old firm for many of the plum domestic commissions associated with New York society families. Among Carrere and Hastings's nearby houses were "Firenze" (1900, for Daniel Guggenheim), "Norwood Park" (1905, for Murray Guggenheim) and a smaller summer residence for S. W. Glazier (1903), all in Elberon. The Hastings family continued to maintain a summer residence in Rumson following the turn of the century, but this church is the only remnant of their sojourns. Alexander M. Noble

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First Presbyterian Church, Rumson: Rumson is fortunate to have this Shingle Style gem, restored by Farewell Mills Gatch Architects. The design, featuring a unique wooded dome and cupola, is the earliest extant work of Thomas S. Hastings, FAIA (1869-1929), whose firm designed the New York Public Library in Manhattan. Hastings's father, a noted Presbyterian minister in New York, served as summer pastor in the village, called Oceanic at that time. In 1885 he asked his son, then a draftsman with McKim, Mead & White, to design a new chapel for the small but wealthy congregation of "cottagers." During the 1880s this era of the Jersey Shore was a playground for America's elite and elaborate summer houses were being built from Middletown to Long Branch. Just as the church was finished in 1886, Hastings left Stanford White's office to form a partnership with John Merven Carrere and to compete against his old firm for many of the plum domestic commissions associated with New York society families. Among Carrere and Hastings's nearby houses were "Firenze" (1900, for Daniel Guggenheim), "Norwood Park" (1905, for Murray Guggenheim) and a smaller summer residence for S. W. Glazier (1903), all in Elberon. The Hastings family continued to maintain a summer residence in Rumson following the turn of the century, but this church is the only remnant of their sojourns.
Alexander M. Noble

Glenmont, Thomas A. Edison's House, West Orange: It is fitting that America's greatest inventor of mass-produced technology should reside in a house designed by Henry Hudson Holly, AIA, one of America's most successful purveyors of mail-order house plans. Glenmont is a handsome Queen Anne house in Llewellyn Park, thought to be America's first planned residential community. Edison purchased the house in 1886 and adapted it for his blended family when he moved his "Invention Factory" to West Orange. Constructed in 1880-1882 for Henry C. Pedder, an executive with the Arnold Constable department stores, Glenmont sat empty and completely furnished following the revelation that Pedder had built it with embezzled funds. Shortly after purchasing the estate, Edison married Mina Miller, the daughter of Lewis Miller, a prominent Methodist businessman and co-founder of the Chautauqua movement. Thereafter the house became associated with Edison's second family, much to the chagrin of the children from his troubled first marriage. A notorious workaholic, Edison spent relatively little time there even during the last decades of his long life, often falling asleep at his desk at the factory. Glenmont is now part of the Edison National Historic Site operated by the National Park Service. Alexander M. Noble

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Glenmont, Thomas A. Edison's House, West Orange: It is fitting that America's greatest inventor of mass-produced technology should reside in a house designed by Henry Hudson Holly, AIA, one of America's most successful purveyors of mail-order house plans. Glenmont is a handsome Queen Anne house in Llewellyn Park, thought to be America's first planned residential community. Edison purchased the house in 1886 and adapted it for his blended family when he moved his "Invention Factory" to West Orange. Constructed in 1880-1882 for Henry C. Pedder, an executive with the Arnold Constable department stores, Glenmont sat empty and completely furnished following the revelation that Pedder had built it with embezzled funds. Shortly after purchasing the estate, Edison married Mina Miller, the daughter of Lewis Miller, a prominent Methodist businessman and co-founder of the Chautauqua movement. Thereafter the house became associated with Edison's second family, much to the chagrin of the children from his troubled first marriage. A notorious workaholic, Edison spent relatively little time there even during the last decades of his long life, often falling asleep at his desk at the factory. Glenmont is now part of the Edison National Historic Site operated by the National Park Service.
Alexander M. Noble

Monmouth Battlefield State Park Visitors Center, Manalapan: The Monmouth Battlefield State Park Visitor Center, designed by ikon.5 architects, is a portal and orientation to a historic battlefield that figured prominently in the American Revolutionary War. The building replaces an underutilized structure built for the Bicentennial with a more open pavilion that places primacy on the landscape of the battlefield as an important artifact. Through its sitting and generous use of large expanses of glass, the pavilion dramatically changes the visitor experience while framing views of the battlefield that were previously obscured. This 10,000-square-foot addition/6,000-square-foot renovation project which features a gallery, orientation theater, museum store, multi-purpose classrooms, and archeological lab has earned LEED Silver certification and was recognized by AIA NJ in 2014 with an Honor Award in the Built - Open category. ikon.5 architects

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Monmouth Battlefield State Park Visitors Center, Manalapan: The Monmouth Battlefield State Park Visitor Center, designed by ikon.5 architects, is a portal and orientation to a historic battlefield that figured prominently in the American Revolutionary War. The building replaces an underutilized structure built for the Bicentennial with a more open pavilion that places primacy on the landscape of the battlefield as an important artifact. Through its sitting and generous use of large expanses of glass, the pavilion dramatically changes the visitor experience while framing views of the battlefield that were previously obscured. This 10,000-square-foot addition/6,000-square-foot renovation project which features a gallery, orientation theater, museum store, multi-purpose classrooms, and archeological lab has earned LEED Silver certification and was recognized by AIA NJ in 2014 with an Honor Award in the Built - Open category.
ikon.5 architects

Newark Penn Station: Built during the final decades of the Pennsylvania Railroad's domination of Northeast passenger service, Newark's Penn Station was a product of engineering innovation as well as architectural creativity. In order to bring three tracks over the Passaic River, a massive 230-foot hinged bridge was constructed - the largest in the world at the time. Moreover, the Newark city subway required an underground extension to reach the new rail terminus. The complex was dedicated in March 1935 and has served the city proudly ever since. Though hemmed in by the working-class Ironbound neighborhood, the station is full of glorious ornament befitting the Streamline Moderne era in American art. The architect was Lawrence Grant White, FAIA, son of Stanford White, FAIA, who became a partner in his father's firm in 1920. The classical touches are reminiscent of McKim, Mead and White's turn of the century buildings, but the overall character of the spaces is Art Moderne. Alexander M. Noble

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Newark Penn Station: Built during the final decades of the Pennsylvania Railroad's domination of Northeast passenger service, Newark's Penn Station was a product of engineering innovation as well as architectural creativity. In order to bring three tracks over the Passaic River, a massive 230-foot hinged bridge was constructed - the largest in the world at the time. Moreover, the Newark city subway required an underground extension to reach the new rail terminus. The complex was dedicated in March 1935 and has served the city proudly ever since. Though hemmed in by the working-class Ironbound neighborhood, the station is full of glorious ornament befitting the Streamline Moderne era in American art. The architect was Lawrence Grant White, FAIA, son of Stanford White, FAIA, who became a partner in his father's firm in 1920. The classical touches are reminiscent of McKim, Mead and White's turn of the century buildings, but the overall character of the spaces is Art Moderne.
Alexander M. Noble

Great Auditorium and Tents, Ocean Grove: The centerpiece of the Christian community of Ocean Grove is the Great Auditorium. It was completed in 1894, built to replace earlier tabernacles that could no longer accommodate ever-growing crowds. The space was initially designed for 10,000 people; today, after the installation of new seating, the capacity is 6,200. The large column-free auditorium space is created by iron trusses spanning the hall. These trusses bear on stone foundations, but the remainder of the hall is wood. The ceiling is vaulted and curved to enhance the acoustic properties of the hall, allowing preachers to be heard by the vast audience prior to amplification. Multiple doors flank the auditorium and, when opened along with windows and wood panels, provide cross ventilation. The room is a welcoming and enfolding space, simple and wholesome in its design and its finishes. On the exterior are 14 tents, laid out in a pattern dating to 1869. The tents were initially intended as temporary shelter for the throngs of visitors who came to the camp meetings. In excess of 700,000 visitors arrived from New York City in 1877. A shed attached to the rear of each tent contains a kitchen and bathroom. These tents are rented for the summer months, but prospective tenants can wait 10 years on a list before being able to rent one. The Auditorium now houses performances throughout the summer, secular as well as religious. Alexander M. Noble

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Great Auditorium and Tents, Ocean Grove: The centerpiece of the Christian community of Ocean Grove is the Great Auditorium. It was completed in 1894, built to replace earlier tabernacles that could no longer accommodate ever-growing crowds. The space was initially designed for 10,000 people; today, after the installation of new seating, the capacity is 6,200. The large column-free auditorium space is created by iron trusses spanning the hall. These trusses bear on stone foundations, but the remainder of the hall is wood. The ceiling is vaulted and curved to enhance the acoustic properties of the hall, allowing preachers to be heard by the vast audience prior to amplification. Multiple doors flank the auditorium and, when opened along with windows and wood panels, provide cross ventilation. The room is a welcoming and enfolding space, simple and wholesome in its design and its finishes. On the exterior are 14 tents, laid out in a pattern dating to 1869. The tents were initially intended as temporary shelter for the throngs of visitors who came to the camp meetings. In excess of 700,000 visitors arrived from New York City in 1877. A shed attached to the rear of each tent contains a kitchen and bathroom. These tents are rented for the summer months, but prospective tenants can wait 10 years on a list before being able to rent one. The Auditorium now houses performances throughout the summer, secular as well as religious.
Alexander M. Noble

The RCA Victor Building, Camden: The RCA Victor Building in Camden, also known as the "Nipper Building," is one of New Jersey's most important and recognizable industrial landmarks. Designed in 1909 by Ballinger and Perrot, this enormous structure has served as a visual landmark for the city since its construction on the waterfront. It was a manufacturing plant for phonograph players and other electrical equipment. The main mass of the building is a six-story industrial loft structure, which is vaguely classical in design. It has a rusticated brick base and brick piers running the full height of the building. Expansive metal windows open between the piers, headed by cast stone lintels and brick spandrel panels that extended to the sills of the windows of the next floor. The walls are capped by a decorative, corbelled brick cornice. An exuberantly detailed tower extends five stories above the sixth floor and is articulated by brick buttresses at the corners with limestone trim. In addition to projecting balconies at an intermediate level, the tower has what appears to be a top level for a clockworks. But instead of clock faces on all four sides, the round openings contain huge stained glass panels depicting the dog Nipper looking into the horn of a phonograph player, which is the visual symbol for "his master's voice," the company's slogan. The building was renovated as condominium loft apartments which saved it from demolition. It is now a vital component in the Camden waterfront. Alexander M. Noble

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The RCA Victor Building, Camden: The RCA Victor Building in Camden, also known as the "Nipper Building," is one of New Jersey's most important and recognizable industrial landmarks. Designed in 1909 by Ballinger and Perrot, this enormous structure has served as a visual landmark for the city since its construction on the waterfront. It was a manufacturing plant for phonograph players and other electrical equipment. The main mass of the building is a six-story industrial loft structure, which is vaguely classical in design. It has a rusticated brick base and brick piers running the full height of the building. Expansive metal windows open between the piers, headed by cast stone lintels and brick spandrel panels that extended to the sills of the windows of the next floor. The walls are capped by a decorative, corbelled brick cornice. An exuberantly detailed tower extends five stories above the sixth floor and is articulated by brick buttresses at the corners with limestone trim. In addition to projecting balconies at an intermediate level, the tower has what appears to be a top level for a clockworks. But instead of clock faces on all four sides, the round openings contain huge stained glass panels depicting the dog Nipper looking into the horn of a phonograph player, which is the visual symbol for "his master's voice," the company's slogan. The building was renovated as condominium loft apartments which saved it from demolition. It is now a vital component in the Camden waterfront.
Alexander M. Noble

Rutgers Business School, Livingston Campus, Piscataway: As part of Phase 1 of the new master plan for Rutgers University, the 150,000-square-foot Business School forms a gateway to the University’s Livingston Campus. The L-shaped building rises 60 feet above Rockafeller Road, becoming a grand entrance through which campus traffic passes, while simultaneously delineating the border between the rapidly urbanizing campus and the neighboring nature preserve. The building is the cornerstone in the University’s master plan, which anticipates a high density of development. Awarded the AIA Honor Award by AIA NJ, the building is a study in non-programmed space, reflecting the ongoing shift in higher education away from a focus on classroom-oriented organization and towards shared collaborative spaces. This shift is especially present in contemporary business, where the cross collaboration of ideas, cultures and concepts is necessary to create, evaluate and market the next big idea. The building is organized in three bands: classroom, office, and public spaces. They are connected vertically by an atrium, and horizontally stitched together via communal spaces of various scales, ranging from the personal nook to the collaboration zone. Circulation spaces engage rather than separate the different building programs and encourage unplanned social interactions. This LEED Silver building by TEN Arquitectos includes classrooms, faculty offices, an auditorium, collaborative study spaces, conference rooms and a dining hall. Peter Aaron

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Rutgers Business School, Livingston Campus, Piscataway: As part of Phase 1 of the new master plan for Rutgers University, the 150,000-square-foot Business School forms a gateway to the University’s Livingston Campus. The L-shaped building rises 60 feet above Rockafeller Road, becoming a grand entrance through which campus traffic passes, while simultaneously delineating the border between the rapidly urbanizing campus and the neighboring nature preserve. The building is the cornerstone in the University’s master plan, which anticipates a high density of development. Awarded the AIA Honor Award by AIA NJ, the building is a study in non-programmed space, reflecting the ongoing shift in higher education away from a focus on classroom-oriented organization and towards shared collaborative spaces. This shift is especially present in contemporary business, where the cross collaboration of ideas, cultures and concepts is necessary to create, evaluate and market the next big idea. The building is organized in three bands: classroom, office, and public spaces. They are connected vertically by an atrium, and horizontally stitched together via communal spaces of various scales, ranging from the personal nook to the collaboration zone. Circulation spaces engage rather than separate the different building programs and encourage unplanned social interactions. This LEED Silver building by TEN Arquitectos includes classrooms, faculty offices, an auditorium, collaborative study spaces, conference rooms and a dining hall.
Peter Aaron

Scottish Rite Auditorium, Collingswood: After participating actively in the founding of the United States, the Freemasons continued to prosper well into the 20th century, offering camaraderie to legions of men in "lodges" or "temples" in urban areas. Membership peaked during the first decades of the 20th century, spurring the construction of many elaborate buildings throughout the United States. The largest, such as the Temple of the Scottish Rite in Collingswood, often featured theaters, classrooms, banquet halls and other public facilities. If some large temples have languished in recent years, the Collingswood building has become a preservation success story. It was purchased by the city and converted into a performing arts center and now offers a full range of concerts throughout the week. Alexander M. Noble

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Scottish Rite Auditorium, Collingswood: After participating actively in the founding of the United States, the Freemasons continued to prosper well into the 20th century, offering camaraderie to legions of men in "lodges" or "temples" in urban areas. Membership peaked during the first decades of the 20th century, spurring the construction of many elaborate buildings throughout the United States. The largest, such as the Temple of the Scottish Rite in Collingswood, often featured theaters, classrooms, banquet halls and other public facilities. If some large temples have languished in recent years, the Collingswood building has become a preservation success story. It was purchased by the city and converted into a performing arts center and now offers a full range of concerts throughout the week.
Alexander M. Noble

State of New Jersey Capitol Complex: The Capitol Complex in Trenton is the second oldest state capitol in continuous use (after Maryland's). A segment of the original State House building designed in 1792 by Jonathan Doane still exists as the Governor's Wing, although it was extensively renovated in the late 19th century. The building went through major alterations in the mid-19th century by the architects John Notman and Samuel Sloan, FAIA. However, most of the building as it currently exist dates from the 20 years around the turn of the 20th century. The Assembly Chamber was designed by James Moylan in 1893, and the Senate Chamber was added by Arnold Moses, FAIA, in 1905. The front section, the dome and the rotunda, which constitute the present image of the building, were designed in 1895 by Lewis Broome, who also designed the city hall in Jersey City. The Capitol Complex includes the State House Annex, which was designed for the judicial branch in the 1920s by Hunt and Kelly. It is a Neo-Classical limestone building of high quality and contains elaborate courtrooms and other public spaces now used as hearing rooms for the legislature. Alexander M. Noble

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State of New Jersey Capitol Complex: The Capitol Complex in Trenton is the second oldest state capitol in continuous use (after Maryland's). A segment of the original State House building designed in 1792 by Jonathan Doane still exists as the Governor's Wing, although it was extensively renovated in the late 19th century. The building went through major alterations in the mid-19th century by the architects John Notman and Samuel Sloan, FAIA. However, most of the building as it currently exist dates from the 20 years around the turn of the 20th century. The Assembly Chamber was designed by James Moylan in 1893, and the Senate Chamber was added by Arnold Moses, FAIA, in 1905. The front section, the dome and the rotunda, which constitute the present image of the building, were designed in 1895 by Lewis Broome, who also designed the city hall in Jersey City. The Capitol Complex includes the State House Annex, which was designed for the judicial branch in the 1920s by Hunt and Kelly. It is a Neo-Classical limestone building of high quality and contains elaborate courtrooms and other public spaces now used as hearing rooms for the legislature.
Alexander M. Noble

Stuart Richardson House, Glen Ridge: Frank Lloyd Wright, FAIA, is known as one of the most prolific architects this country has ever produced. He is widely revered by architects and just plain folks. His masterpieces are justifiably well-known, and although much of his later work is mediocre, the little-known Usonian houses of his late career have had a profound impact upon the design and construction of the American single-family house since the 1950s. Usonian was Wright's term for an all-encompassing master plan for the American landscape. Through it, he hoped to house the middle class in individual houses designed to be generous in spirit and modest in size. These houses were built without basements, attics or garages, and with flat roofs, small kitchens and bedrooms, and extensive expanses of glass doors to permit access to the outside. The Stuart Richardson house, designed in 1941 but not built until 1951, is an example of a Usonian house. The floor plan is based on a large equilateral triangle, which then has triangles and hexagons of various sizes superimposed. Their alignments are shifted, and sides are omitted, creating a complex relationship of interlocking forms. A small kitchen forms one corner of a large triangle, while the living room with adjacent dining space encompasses the remaining spaces. The other two corners are masonry and contain inglenooks, one for a fireplace, the other for a small study. The wood ceiling, laid out in an overlapping pattern of cypress planks to reinforce the floor plan's geometry, is a wonderful and dynamic interior feature. Alexander M. Noble

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Stuart Richardson House, Glen Ridge: Frank Lloyd Wright, FAIA, is known as one of the most prolific architects this country has ever produced. He is widely revered by architects and just plain folks. His masterpieces are justifiably well-known, and although much of his later work is mediocre, the little-known Usonian houses of his late career have had a profound impact upon the design and construction of the American single-family house since the 1950s. Usonian was Wright's term for an all-encompassing master plan for the American landscape. Through it, he hoped to house the middle class in individual houses designed to be generous in spirit and modest in size. These houses were built without basements, attics or garages, and with flat roofs, small kitchens and bedrooms, and extensive expanses of glass doors to permit access to the outside. The Stuart Richardson house, designed in 1941 but not built until 1951, is an example of a Usonian house. The floor plan is based on a large equilateral triangle, which then has triangles and hexagons of various sizes superimposed. Their alignments are shifted, and sides are omitted, creating a complex relationship of interlocking forms. A small kitchen forms one corner of a large triangle, while the living room with adjacent dining space encompasses the remaining spaces. The other two corners are masonry and contain inglenooks, one for a fireplace, the other for a small study. The wood ceiling, laid out in an overlapping pattern of cypress planks to reinforce the floor plan's geometry, is a wonderful and dynamic interior feature.
Alexander M. Noble

Trenton Bath House and Day Camp Pavilions, Ewing Township: The Bath House is widely regarded as a turning point in the career of architect Louis Kahn, FAIA. This project was the first realization of his concept of "servant" and "served" spaces, which he further developed in such projects as the Richards Medical Center, the Salk Institute and the Kimbell Art Museum. Icons of modern American architecture, Kahn's Trenton Bath House (1955) and Day Camp Pavilions (1957) were commissioned by the Trenton Jewish Community Center and designed as crisp geometric forms within a proportional, ordered landscape. Kahn also designed a community center building, a central green framed by trees, and tree-lined parking lots, but these elements were not constructed. The Bath House has a Greek cross plan with pyramidal roofs floating over the cinder-block demising walls. The rooms are in turn anchored to the concrete slabs of the "servant" elements which form baffled entries into the dressing rooms or separate toilet rooms within the dressing areas. The entrance to the Bath House was marked by a mural painted by Kahn's staff depicting aquatic motifs. The original design for the central atrium called for a circular spray pool, which was never fully constructed. The four Day Camp Pavilions were designed to resemble a group of Greek temples and were built with concrete-filled sewer pipes for columns and precast concrete planks forming the roofs. The entire site has now been conveyed to Ewing Township for use as a community and senior center, and the Kahn work will be maintained for its original uses. Alexander M. Noble

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Trenton Bath House and Day Camp Pavilions, Ewing Township: The Bath House is widely regarded as a turning point in the career of architect Louis Kahn, FAIA. This project was the first realization of his concept of "servant" and "served" spaces, which he further developed in such projects as the Richards Medical Center, the Salk Institute and the Kimbell Art Museum. Icons of modern American architecture, Kahn's Trenton Bath House (1955) and Day Camp Pavilions (1957) were commissioned by the Trenton Jewish Community Center and designed as crisp geometric forms within a proportional, ordered landscape. Kahn also designed a community center building, a central green framed by trees, and tree-lined parking lots, but these elements were not constructed. The Bath House has a Greek cross plan with pyramidal roofs floating over the cinder-block demising walls. The rooms are in turn anchored to the concrete slabs of the "servant" elements which form baffled entries into the dressing rooms or separate toilet rooms within the dressing areas. The entrance to the Bath House was marked by a mural painted by Kahn's staff depicting aquatic motifs. The original design for the central atrium called for a circular spray pool, which was never fully constructed. The four Day Camp Pavilions were designed to resemble a group of Greek temples and were built with concrete-filled sewer pipes for columns and precast concrete planks forming the roofs. The entire site has now been conveyed to Ewing Township for use as a community and senior center, and the Kahn work will be maintained for its original uses.
Alexander M. Noble

Whig Hall, Princeton University: Whig Hall is a Greek Revival temple of the Doric order designed by A. Page Brown, FAIA, in 1895. It was built as one of the two matching buildings behind Nassau Hall that housed the rival campus debating groups, the Whig and Cliosophical Societies. These buildings of Vermont marble replaced smaller and earlier wood-frame temples on the same sites. In 1970 the interior of Whig Hall was destroyed by fire. It was rebuilt in the modernist idiom by Charles Gwathmey, FAIA (1938-2009), one of the "New York Five," five architects who explored formal issues in similar ways and whose 1967 Museum of Modern Art exhibition and subsequent book caused a stir (the others were Richard Meier, FAIA; Michael Graves, FAIA; John Hejduk, FAIA; and Peter Eisenman, FAIA). At Whig, the original east wall was removed, and the marble end columns were made to serve as a frame for a concrete and glass insertion into the classical context. The solution won many design awards and merited international publication and interest. Another renovation in 2009 by Farewell Mills Gatsch Architects made many functional and systems improvements to the building while restoring the essence of the Gwathmey design and preserving original 1895 fabric. Alexander M. Noble

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Whig Hall, Princeton University: Whig Hall is a Greek Revival temple of the Doric order designed by A. Page Brown, FAIA, in 1895. It was built as one of the two matching buildings behind Nassau Hall that housed the rival campus debating groups, the Whig and Cliosophical Societies. These buildings of Vermont marble replaced smaller and earlier wood-frame temples on the same sites. In 1970 the interior of Whig Hall was destroyed by fire. It was rebuilt in the modernist idiom by Charles Gwathmey, FAIA (1938-2009), one of the "New York Five," five architects who explored formal issues in similar ways and whose 1967 Museum of Modern Art exhibition and subsequent book caused a stir (the others were Richard Meier, FAIA; Michael Graves, FAIA; John Hejduk, FAIA; and Peter Eisenman, FAIA). At Whig, the original east wall was removed, and the marble end columns were made to serve as a frame for a concrete and glass insertion into the classical context. The solution won many design awards and merited international publication and interest. Another renovation in 2009 by Farewell Mills Gatsch Architects made many functional and systems improvements to the building while restoring the essence of the Gwathmey design and preserving original 1895 fabric.
Alexander M. Noble

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The Landis Theater, Vineland: The Landis theater is one of the finest works of Art Moderne architecture in New Jersey. Designed by William Lee, AIA, for Eugene Mori in 1938, it originally held 1,200 seats for movies and live performances. Lee, a Philadelphia architect, designed many theaters and public buildings in the Delaware Valley, including the Lansdowne and Sedgewick Theaters near Philadelphia and Mitten Memorial Hall at Temple University. The streamlined design was executed in buff brick with cast stone, black Carrera glass, stainless steel, and glass block. The theater entrance has curved walls, which are reflected in the semicircular marquee. The marquee incorporates metal panels, stainless steel moldings and neon strip lighting. The "Landis" sign is made of bent metal, which is an intrinsic part of the marquee design. The original circular metal and glass ticket booth remains beneath the marquee. The adjacent Mori Building is a commercial building constructed of the same brick detailing as the theater and was conceived as part of the complex. One of the most playful and theatrical buildings in New Jersey, the Landis Theater was renovated in 2011 as a 750-seat performing arts venue.